Rising West Australian gun Jacob Blight has been dropped from Richmond’s side this week to make way for Noah Balta despite the senior player awaiting sentencing after admitting to assault.

Balta pleaded guilty to assault and will be sentenced on Tuesday for an incident in December, but will face off against the Suns at the Marvel Stadium on Saturday at the expense of mid-season draftee Jacob Blight.

He played a VFL practice match last weekend, and after serving a club-imposed four-match ban, coach Adam Yze says he had been punished enough.”

“He’s available to play this weekend,” Yze said on Wednesday.

“He pleaded guilty by the fact that he told us what happened, and that’s why we went really hard.

“We’ve got young players at our club right now and on our list that needed to understand that it was wrong, what he did, and that’s why we went really hard.

“Right now, he served that sentence, and he’s getting ready to play, and now it’s around performance.

“He’s a Richmond man, and as I said, we’ve punished him enough.”

It’s a cruel blow for Blight, who has played every game so far this year and had a career-best 18 touches against St Kilda in round three.

The Albany product has been rotated through the lines, spending time in the forward line and defence while at times operating as Richmond’s second ruck this season.

It also flies in the face of Richmond’s youth-first approach after they hollowed out their list to bring in as much elite young talent as possible.

Balta’s inclusion won the eve of sentencing is a controversial move with the club being given a please explain from Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan when it was announced he would be available for selection.

“What sort of message does this send to kids about what’s right and what’s wrong?” Allan said.

“I think that’s really a question the AFL and Richmond need to answer.”

Former premiership teammate Jack Riewoldt also cautioned his former club against bringing Balta back.

“I don’t think they should play him - I don’t think it is smart,” Riewoldt said on Fox Footy last Saturday night.

Balta’s return could be short-lived, however, after he pleaded guilty in the Corowa Local Court to assault occasioning actual bodily harm, which in NSW carries a maximum penalty of five years in jail.

Prosecutors said Balta’s actions, which hospitalised the victim Thomas Washbrook with head injuries, met the threshold of a high-level offence.

Balta’s defence team admitted to the court the incident was serious, but argued the assault was at the higher end of a mid-level offence.